Dr. Thomas Madsen does more than just teach mathematics, he lives it. That same passion he has for math is the same passion he brings to teaching our STEMians.

“I love math, and it’s nice to have a job where all you have to do is talk about math,” Dr. Madsen joked.

From an early age, Dr. Madsen had always wanted to involve math in his life. He recollected the first time he realized that he loved mathematics. Around the third or fourth grade his teachers started to teach the class about square roots. Dr. Madsen did not decide that math was what he wanted to do for the rest of his life until early high school. Becoming a mathematics professor, though, is a little different.

“I think you realize at some point [that you want to teach],” Dr. Madsen said. “Teaching comes out of the side of wanting to talk about math.”

After working as a teaching assistant while earning his Ph.D. from the University of Oklahoma, he knew teaching was the way to go. Dr. Madsen likes seeing students go from not knowing something to watching them light up when they figure out how to complete the problem.

“I like seeing a student approach a problem that doesn’t make any sense at all, but then make sense of it. I like that experience,” he said.

Dr. Madsen is excited to get to know the students at YSU and the mathematics department, but he is also excited to get involved with the various clubs, organizations, and events that the math department has.

“I look forward to working with students, because I have never had the opportunity to work with a student of a senior project,” he said. “That’s something I would really look forward to doing.”